Keith Foskin Master of Fine Arts Scholarship

Keith Foskin was born in 1956. He grew up in Saint Louis, Missouri. Although Keith had always been interested in art, he first became seriously engaged in the arts when he took an introductory drawing course at the Florissant Valley Community College in the late 1970's which was taught by a strict eastern European emigre, Professor George Bartko.

Keith continued to take numerous art classes and traveled for several years, before finally settling in Fort Collins, Colorado. He earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Art from Colorado State University (CSU) in 1986. From 1986 to 1989, Keith completed his Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Art, with a concentration in Painting. His MFA thesis was titled: "It's Gonna' Take a Lot of Love to Get Us Through the Advertisements." From 1989-2008, Keith lived in various places including Reno, Lake Tahoe, and Fort Collins.

During this period, he exhibited his work and continued to paint, draw and make prints as he perfected and mastered his own distinct artistic style and content. There are many artists that inspired and influenced Keith's work. The east coast Abstract Expressionists, especially Willem De Kooning, always remained his major artistic influence, along with James G. Davis, a painter living in the American Southwest. In the middle 2000's, the South African painter (now living in the Netherlands), Marlene Dumas remained quite inspirational to him.

Throughout his life as a painter, Keith strove to reassemble (quoting Keith's artist statement) 'the initial idealized image (such as a cover of a Vogue Magazine or a holiday greeting card) via askew visual proportions and cockeyed narratives.' These attempts fashioned 'an unmasking of the tangled maze of a commercial hypnotic sensuality.' He wasn't only after the 'pretty pictures of numerous utopias of commerce (celebrity(ism)) but wished to also expose the 'visual naivety which internalizes' such images.

When Keith died unexpectedly while skiing on February 3, 2008, the loss was immediate. Keith's partner, Alexandra Bernasek, expresses our feelings well: He felt like he had all the time in the world. We do not have all the time in the world, but he painted as if he did. His work lives on and although he had so many more paintings in him, what he leaves us is enough. Please, see his work. His name is Keith Foskin.

Criteria:

First year Master of Fine Arts student with a declared concentration in painting

Minimum overall 3.2 GPA

Not have received an assistantship

Apply:

All painting Art majors are automatically considered. If you are a finalist for this scholarship, you will be contacted in February to submit a three-piece portfolio in March. Any questions about Art scholarships should be directed to the department at 970 491 6774.